


Whumptober 2020

by WhiskerBiscuit



Category: Ratchet & Clank
Genre: Additional Warnings In Author's Note, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Canonical Character Death, Character Death, Gen, Manhandling, Non-Consensual Touching, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Restraints, Whump, Whumptober
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-01
Updated: 2020-10-07
Packaged: 2021-03-07 16:46:41
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 2,429
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26750836
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WhiskerBiscuit/pseuds/WhiskerBiscuit
Summary: Thirty-one prompts for thirty-one days of Whumptober! Will mostly be Ratchet-and-Clank centric but there will be plenty of whump for other characters as well.Day 4: Running out of Time - Kaden wanted to escape Fastoon with his whole family. He didn't quite make it in time.
Comments: 4
Kudos: 8
Collections: Whumptober 2020





	1. Let's Hang Out Sometime!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ratchet and Clank get an unexpected (and unwelcome) visitor to their apartment. Takes place pre-Tools of Destruction.
> 
> Day 1 prompt themes: waking up restrained, blindfolded
> 
> This prompt fic is rated T for previous themes as well as non-consensual touching.

Breaking into the apartment was practically child’s play. For intergalactic heroes, Ratchet and Clank sure didn’t seem to care about the security of their own home.

She hummed as she stepped past the living room and into the bedroom, where her target was curled up and snoring like a giant kitty. It took all her willpower not to squeal in delight at the sight of it. Even the light steps of her feet on the carpet were enough to make the tips of his ears twitch, and she didn’t want to wake him up before she got to the fun part.

Clank was in sleep mode on the nightstand beside him, but she wasn’t worried. As quietly as possible, she pulled out the two most important objects in this entire plan. One was a portable EMP. The other was a canister of lombax snooze gas.

Creeping up to the bed was agonizingly slow. The payoff, however, of simultaneously cracking open the canister against Ratchet’s cheek and pressing the EMP against Clank’s body more than made up for it. The robot short-circuited almost instantly, falling on his back with a loud clang. Ratchet woke up and started flailing, ready to fight, but he’d already inhaled so much gas that it was too late. He passed out without even getting a glimpse of his attacker.

Just the way she wanted it.

* * *

When Ratchet woke up again, he was dazed and on defense. He didn’t know exactly what hit him but he knew he was still in danger. It was pitch black when he blinked, and the lombax realized he’d been blindfolded. He was lying down on something. Trying to move his limbs was futile as well – his wrists were restrained together above his head and his feet were tied much the same way, legs stretched out almost to hyperextension. The material under him was soft and familiar. He was still in his own bed.

Movement to his right. The friction of footsteps on carpet and quiet breathing. Ratchet’s ears stood straight to attention, vigilant and nervous.

“Who’s there?”

He was a little surprised he hadn’t been gagged. The ears being left alone made sense, since most people couldn’t tell how much of it he used for hearing in the first place, but why let him keep his voice?

The answer came swiftly and not in any way he was expecting.

“Aww, I’ve never heard you sound like that!” A little giggle. “Usually you’re always so confident and fearless.”

Ratchet didn’t recognize the voice. It wasn’t altered in any way as far as he could tell, but no names, faces, or even species came to mind.

“Who are you? What do you want?”

“I just wanted to spend some time with you!”

He gritted his teeth, confused and angry. “You haven’t answered my first question.”

More rustling as his captor moved closer. Two cold, furless hands cupped his face. He recoiled but they stayed put, and he had to resist the urge to bite them.

“I’m your biggest fan, Ratchet!”

The lombax was taken aback. He knew Qwark had followers like this, and Clank certainly had to dodge a few fanatics at Secret Agent Clank screenings once or twice. But for _him_ to have – wait, Clank!

“Where’s Clank?!”

“He’s okay. I just put him to sleep for a little bit so he doesn’t bother us. I know how much you care about him.”

Ratchet growled. If Clank was hurt in any way then this ‘fan’ was going to regret ever laying eyes on him.

“Oh, but enough about him. I came here for you, after all.”

The hands left his cheeks, then started petting his ears. He gasped and thrashed his head to no avail.

“Stop touching me!”

“Why would I do that? You’re so soft and fluffy and adorable. I bet I’m the first fan to ever touch your ears!”

He wasn’t going to give them the satisfaction of knowing how true that statement was. Ratchet had always had issues with being touched. Most of it came from growing up in a fairly hostile desert environment all by himself, where any physical contact was usually from a predator. Clank was still the only person he could let that close without being on guard.

“If you wanted something soft so badly, just get a protopet. I’m not a toy.”

“You silly, I already have toys of you. They’re not nearly as soft.” One hand found the base of his ear and started massaging. The other hand strayed down to his bare chest.

A chill ran up Ratchet’s spine. “Stop touching me.”

He’d gone to bed wearing only his mechanic pants without the harness. He was still wearing them now, thank god, but up till this point he had been thinking of potential physical violence by his captor. Whatever _this_ was, he wanted it to stop immediately.

They ignored his demand, continuing to play with his ear and chest fur.

 _“Stop touching me,”_ he repeated, getting stressed. His tail puffed against his will, and though he couldn’t see where his captor was looking, he still tensed up as their hands stopped petting and they made a quiet ‘aww’.

“Don’t. Don’t!” Ratchet pleaded now as he felt them start to lean over him, towards his bristling tail.

There was another sound suddenly, a familiar sound of processors booting up and mechanical gears shifting. His captor drew off of him and backed away with a few curses. His ears caught every moment of them rushing out of the room and out of the apartment completely, which was about where the extent of his hearing tapered off.

“Ratchet? What is going on?” Clank’s bemused voice was like a tidal wave of relief.

“Clank! Get me outta this quick!”

The robot hopped onto the bed immediately and undid the lombax’s blindfold. Ratchet had never been so happy to see those giant green eyes.

“What happened?” He asked as he moved onto the ropes around his friend’s wrists.

“Some stalker came into our place, and if we hurry we might still catch them. Are you okay?”

“I am fine, I am simply disoriented. I feel as though I should be asking you that question instead.”

“Yeah, uh, I’m fine too.” He pursed his lips as Clank glanced very briefly at his agitated tail. “I’m fine! Just…spooked. Remind me to add some home security after this.”

“That would be very much appreciated. I do not wish to be in such a vulnerable position again.”

Phantom fingers still traced his fur. Ratchet shuddered.

“You and me both, pal.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The plan ~~(hope)~~ is to complete all 31 days of this challenge. I fell hard and fast back into R&C thanks to the new Rift Apart game coming out, and I have no idea how or when I’ll crawl myself out of it.
> 
> Ratings, warnings, and length of each prompt is subject to change. Please heed them, as some of these are gonna be real doozies. Course, what else can you really expect from me lol.


	2. In the Hands of the Enemy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Vox reminds his newest rising star exactly what his place is.
> 
> Day 2 prompt themes: kidnapped, collared
> 
> This prompt fic is rated K+ for brief language and violence.

“I own you,” Vox snarls. “I own everything about you, and I can take it all away if you don’t shape up.”

Ratchet glares back at him, refusing to say a word. The media mogul snaps his fingers and a guard knees the lombax hard in the gut. Even with the armor it hurts like a bitch, and he falls to his knees.

“Let’s try this again. When I say jump, you ask ‘how high’ _while_ you’re jumping. When I tell you to kill someone, you kill them in the way that’s gonna get me the most ratings. And when I decide you’re going to be the new face of Dreadzone, you don’t get to tell me no. Capiche?”

Silence is his answer. Another snap of fingers, another kick. This time it knocks Ratchet down almost completely.

“I’m really being quite generous, you know. I could’ve killed you and your useless ‘friends’ anytime you were a nuisance, which was often. That stunt with removing the deadlock collars was enough all on its own. Oh yeah,” he grins when Ratchet gives him an alarmed look. “Ace told me all about it. Too bad about that mechanic of yours, but that’s just the way the game’s played.”

“Don’t you dare say…anything about Al,” the hero grunts, standing back up. “And I will _never_ be your puppet.”

Vox’s eyes gleam. He leans in close enough for Ratchet to feel the heat of his breath. “Already too late for that, kid.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A shorter prompt unfortunately, but I think it drives the point home well enough.
> 
> I've noticed that my submissions have been a lot...tamer, than some other people's, which is kinda hilarious. Apparently I need to step my game up :)


	3. My Way or the Highway

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Talwyn has a less-than-stellar introduction to Zordoom Prison.
> 
> Day 3 prompt themes: manhandled, forced to their knees
> 
> This prompt is rated K+ for brief guard brutality.

Talwyn fell to her hands and knees as the drophyd guards laughed, towering above her in all of their glorified portable fish tanks.

“Apogee, Talwyn. Markazian. Indicted at 14:44 Zordoom time. Standard laser blast and jetpack confiscated on arrival.” One of them spoke aloud as they tapped information into a tablet. “Reason for conviction: assaulting militant members of the Empire, harboring and aiding a lombax, and defying the will of Emperor Tachyon.”

“Let me go, you creeps!” She tried to get her feet back under her, but a mechanic foot on her back forced her to stay put.

“Place the prisoner in cell block #8439529 while her sentence is being decided.”

The markazian squawked when a guard grabbed her by the back of her scarf, lifting her into the air with ease. She struggled, kicked, and cursed them out as she was handcuffed and toted down the hallway. Her legs swung uselessly underneath her.

Was this what being an adventurer, a hero felt like? Did Ratchet have to deal with this kind of thing on the regular? If so, Talwyn was going to ask him how he got out of these situations because it was absolutely humiliating and awful.

They passed a cell where a guard was laying into a helpless inmate, and she averted her eyes. If she ever saw him again, that was.

It took far too long to reach her own chamber. The hold on Talwyn’s scarf was callous and nearly choking, and no matter what she tried he wouldn’t even let her walk on her own. When another guard opened the door, she was tossed in head-first and barely managed to catch herself before the floor gave her a bloody nose.

The guards laughed again, closed the door and moved on. Talwyn sniffed, bringing her knees close to her chest and leaning her head against one of the walls.

Prison really, _really_ sucked.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fell a little behind on the daily challenge, but I'm still planning to finish all of them! Hoping to get the next few done today or tomorrow to catch up, and then they should start getting longer again. Thanks for reading!


	4. Running out of Time

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kaden wanted to escape Fastoon with his whole family. He didn't quite make it in time.
> 
> Day 4 prompt themes: collapsed building
> 
> This prompt fic is rated M for mentions of war, genocide, and canonical character death.

They had agreed to meet up on the outskirts of the city after Kaden sent the rest of the lombaxes to a new dimension. He had wanted her to leave with them, to take their newborn son and build a life in the unknown, but she had refused.

“I’m not leaving you here to die at the hands of that monster, Kaden,” she asserted over the comm. “We both know that you won’t be able to join everyone else without risking him getting his hands on the dimensionator. You’re not going to face this alone.”

“We’ve already lost so many though – your brother, a-and…” It was still too painful to say Alister’s name out loud. The man might not have actually been killed but he felt the grief of it all the same. “I can’t lose you too, Alidade, please.”

“Tachyon doesn’t know there’s any lombaxes outside of the inner courts,” his wife countered. “It’s not like he has a lombax-tracking device; we’ll be fine. Just do what you need to do and we’ll flee Fastoon together, all three of us.”

Kaden felt a roiling in his gut that had nothing to do with the events of the last week. But he couldn’t talk her out of her decision with a bad feeling alone.

“Okay, okay. Just, _please_ keep yourself hidden until I call you again.”

“I can take care of myself. It’ll be okay.” Alidade logged off the call with a ghost of a smile, the first hope in her eyes since the invasion had begun.

He would keep that image in the forefront of his mind until his last breath.

Evacuating the remaining citizens went smoothly and quickly, all things considered. Tachyon’s war machines were still struggling to chip away at the outer defenses of the court, and it gave Kaden enough time to send everyone through to the elected dimension as well as sneak out of the building himself. He rushed towards the perimeter of the city, hoping to catch his wife and child and fly out before the cragmite even realized there was another lombax running loose outside.

Then the bomb hit.

Kaden was far enough away that he only witnessed its destruction; buildings fell like children’s towers and the rendezvous point – just a few blocks from his position – was buried in rubble.

The lombax took off in a full sprint, stealth be damned. He vaulted over debris and skidded to a halt as he saw his wife’s spaceship. The front of it was half crushed in brick and mortar.

“No, no, no, no!” Kaden cried out, practically launching himself down into the impact point. “Ali! Ali, where are you?!”

The only response was another explosion somewhere in the distance. The lombax nearly collided with the side of the ship as he came up to it and struggled to see into the shattered front windshield. His heart dropped to his stomach when he realized a giant rock had smashed straight through it. Climbing on top of the ship’s nose yielded the full, terrible picture.

Alidade was slumped forward on the controls. The rock had fallen at just an angle to crush her just below the shoulders. Her eyes were wide and unseeing, and blood oozed in a final fatal trail out of her mouth and down her chin.

Kaden sobbed, pressing both hands to his mouth to keep the screaming muffled. He sat on the nose of the ship, staring at his wife’s body as the anguish and desolation of everything that had happened, that _was_ happening, finally was too much for him to hold back.

A tiny, fragile mewl pulled the lombax out of his mourning. He listened, dumbfounded, as the cries of his infant son resounded out of the still-intact back of the ship. Kaden choked through another sob and slid off the front of the ship, hurrying to the far end where he manually opened its trunk.

Their son was tucked away between swathes of blankets and active shield chargers, completely unharmed and crying his head off. His father turned the shields off with shaking hands and picked the baby up, holding him close and tight.

“I’m so sorry,” he whispered as the city burned and broke around them. “I’m so sorry.”

Leaving Alidade where she had died was one of the hardest things Kaden ever had to do, but already he could hear the war machines coming closer, probably tipped off by his and his son’s cries. There was no more time to waste.

Kaden fled Fastoon with his child and the dimensionator, and never looked back.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Me: Oh I've been focusing on Ratchet too much, I should try my hand at other characters  
> Also me: writes the worst one so far for Ratchet's dad
> 
> Sorry Kaden, your story is just too tragic.


End file.
